


Adventures Across Vana'diel

by TheSonicCenturion



Category: FFXI, Final Fantasy XI
Genre: Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-03
Updated: 2014-06-20
Packaged: 2018-02-03 06:33:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1734614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSonicCenturion/pseuds/TheSonicCenturion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Orphaned as a child, Ellorna grows up in Windurst under the tutelage of the infamous Nanaa Mihgo, Thief extraordinaire, who takes her on as a protégé to aid the fellow Mithra in seeking justice against the Yagudo that murdered her Mother. Ellorna is unaware though that there is more to the death of her Mother than she could have ever imagined. Join her on her journey as she uncovers the truth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

Fingers of orange, pink, and purple colored the sky as the sun rose into the blue vastness over the Crag of Mea. Beauty like never seen before as the young mithra child sat alone on the stairs to the crystal where she had appeared after her Mother had had some stranger teleport her out of Castle Oztroja after some Yagudo had swarmed around them. She’d held onto her Mother’s skirts, begged her to come with them, but her Mother had refused and decided to stay behind to distract them so the White Mage could get his spell off. With all her Warrior rage she’d drawn her great axe and started swinging, feathers flying everywhere, until they’d eventually dragged her down into the middle of the circle they’d formed…Her Mother’s screams had been the last thing she’d heard as the spell went off.

And now, here she sat by herself. The White Mage that had saved her, whose name she did not particularly remember due to all the chaos that had been going on, had given her a dagger and wished her luck before warping. There had been no apology for not saving her Mother nor any offer of an escort back to her beloved home of Windurst. Just a dagger.

Staring at the weapon, brows furrowed, she sighed softly. What would she do with something so small? She’d never been taught to use a weapon of any kind. Her Mother had not felt that she was old enough yet to learn to use such a dangerous tool, but had instead taught her the lovely tactic of scream, run, and hide. Having given her a linkpearl one night, she’d explained how it was to be used, and it had never left her pocket. Even now she could hear her Mother’s loving voice, “Ellorna, if you are in danger remember that help is only a call away. I will never be far from your side.”

Tears streaming down her young face, a shaking hand drew the linkpearl from her pocket and with an angry cry threw it. She didn’t care where it landed. Never would she go hunting for it. That had been the contact for her and her Mother, and now she was dead. Gone. She had left her side. Ellorna was angry at her Mother for leaving her, angry at the Yagudo for taking her away, and furious that she was now alone without any knowledge how to defend herself. If only they had never gone there hunting that silly pair of Moccasins her Mother had promised her for her birthday….

“Why?! Why?!” The words were filled with sorrow, blue eyes locked on the sky, as she yelled angrily at Altana. Wanting an answer that she knew would never come. Altana would never explain to her the reasons for allowing those evil Yagudos to kill her Mother and leave her alone.

Somebody did respond though.

“What is all that yelling about, little tigerrrr?”

Lifting her head, Ellorna saw an older Mithra standing beside her. She had a proud bearing to her stance, red hair shining in the sun as she tilted her head at a regal angle that made her seem of noble birth. Yet, the way she dressed would make one think that she did not want to announce this fact.

Blinking slightly, wiping her face off with a hand, she whispered sadly, “Altana let the Yagudos kill my Mother…”

“Really now?” The older Mithra plopped down next to the younger one, her gaze on the sky. “I doubt that yelling at the sky will get you any answers, little tiger. Perhaps the answer is not to blame Altana, but to blame the Yagudo.”

Ellorna’s bright blue eyes locked on the older Mithra’s face, her tear-streaked face filled with anger, “I want revenge. I want every single Yagudo to die. I…don’t know how to do that though…” Lifting the hand that held the dagger, she sighed defeatedly, “I don’t know how to use a weapon or to fight…”

“If it’s revenge you want then the way to get it is not always by using a weapon or violence. There are other ways.” Taking the dagger, she twirled it in her hand, faster and faster, and then suddenly the dagger had vanished. In its place was a pretty gold coin. “The Yagudo have money, coffers hidden secretly and bags attached to their belts, that they use for means unknown to most of Vana’diel. If they were to lose this coin then those means would be hindered and that could be a revenge of sorts.”

The words spoken slowly took shape in the young Mithra’s mind and a light seemed to go off inside her brain. It made perfect sense. She could learn to use the weapon to defend herself if necessary, but she would get revenge on the Yagudo by stealing their money. Looking up at the woman, a firm look on her face now, she murmured, “Will you train me to be a Thief?”

“I will do better than that, little tiger. I will change your life.” A wide grin was given as she took the child’s hand, and both standing they made for the Federation of Windurst.

 

 


	2. Yags of A Feather

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While out earning a living, Ellorna takes notice of strange behavior.

Crouching behind a bush in Tahrongi Canyon, Ellorna watched a Yagudo as he moved around with his friends. They seemed to stroll the same length of ground each, having some kind of parameter, until they all three met back up at the same spot to communicate for a short length of time. She’d been watching them for two days now, having made camp overnight just on the other side of the Crag of Mea only a short distance away, and had decided to make her move tonight.

At the moment they were standing in a small circle, talking back in forth in a speech that the Mithra did not understand, and she waited patiently for them to separate. Idly she sharpened her claws with the curved blade of her dagger, a light breeze blowing that played with the brown strands of her short hair, as those blue eyes adjusted for the dimming sunlight. She was grateful that sunset had come about just in time for her fun. Those lips curved with pleasure as she saw the Yagudos salute each other before each began to leave each others company and she followed the one that went to the East as he traveled furthest from the others.

By the time the Yagudo got to the end of its path, stopping briefly to communicate into a linkpearl(something Ellorna had found unusual the first time she’d seen them do it), the moon had taken its place in the sky overhead. Taking a pebble from the pouch at her waist, she aimed for a bush a few inches away from the Yagudo and tossed it, and watched as its attention turned from the bush she hid behind to the one she’d hit. With a stealth learned through training since she had been taken in by Nanaa Mihgo as a child she reached out and snatched the small pouch off the side of his waist. Pulling her arm back, she emptied the coins inside into her own pouch then waited for the Yagudo to either take notice, which meant she hadn’t been as stealthy as she’d thought, or to head off back to the rendezvous spot. When it turned back around Ellorna thought for sure that she’d been caught, breath catching in her throat, until she saw the Yagudo lift his linkpearl again before heading back the way he’d come.

That breath she was holding was not released though until she had made her way back to her camp at the crag. Laughing with relief, she sat down by her bedroll, removing the pouch from where it was attached to her belt, and placed it on the ground before her. Wiping her palm on her rogue’s culottes, she popped it open and began counting the money she’d stolen tonight. If she added it up with the money she’d taken while practicing to attack that Yagudo it would be quite a lot.

“Such a lovely amount. Nanaa will be pleased.” The words were whispered with pleasure as she always felt happiest when she made her Mentor proud. Part of what she earned went to Nanaa, which was no less than Ellorna expected as she was the boss lady.

Placing it all back in her pouch, she attached it back to her waist then rolled up her bedroll and shoved it into her sack with her other belongings. Standing up, sack strap placed over her shoulder, she started off on her long walk home.

~*~

“Well, well, look what the cat drrrug in.” That teasing voice was quite welcome to Ellorna’s ears as she turned the corner and found Nanaa standing by her table perusing whatever news had been brought to her by other Thieves in her guild. “What do you have for me today, little tigerrr?”

The nickname the woman had given her upon their first meeting had stuck, creating a closer bond between the two that some others seemed a tad bit jealous of, and it made Ellorna smile. Though she was exhausted from walking all night without a break she had first come to see Nanaa before heading back to her mog house for a little bit of rest and relaxation courtesy of her Moogle. Opening her pouch, she pulled out 50 of the gold coins, having kept the others for herself along with the cheaper mythril and silver coins, and placed them on the table in front of her mentor.

Watching the way Nanaa’s eyes lit up with joy, her smile widening, Ellorna could have danced with her pleasure, “The Yagudo was foolish and an easy tarrrget. I was going to go afterrr the other two, but they seem to keep close a bit morrre.” That made her brows furrow as a shake of her head was given, “I sometimes wish I underrrstood the tongue that they used. I think they are up to something that could cause a lot of trrrouble for the people of Vana’diel. The way they talk and the way they’ve suddenly began to use linkpearls, and…the orrrder to how they keep watch now. It all makes me verrry suspicious.”

“Linkpearls?” That made Nanaa glance away from the coins she’d been putting into her little chest, eyes filled with curiosity as she continued, “If they are up to something we will need to know what. I’ll put Rrrona on it. I’ll make sure that any information she finds comes to me and I will let you know what we learrrn. Do not tell anyone else about this though, little tigerrr. This should not go beyond the ears of those within my guild. Understood?”

Nodding to make it clear that she would not speak of the matter to others, Ellorna smiled warmly, “I’m going to go let my Moogle coddle me now.”

“Go rrrest. You look ghastly.” With a teasing smile Nanaa shooed her away.

Heading off for her mog house, happy to be home, Ellorna couldn’t get her mind off of her conversation with Nanaa. If the Yagudo did have something up their sleeve then shouldn’t Semih Lafihna, leader of the Sibyl Guards and Patriarch Protector to the Star Sibyl herself, be notified? Though she could understand that Nanaa felt her guild of thieves should keep any information learned a secret, most likely to try to profit off of it, Ellorna could not help the feeling that by doing so she was being disloyal to the Federation of Windurst.

Waving to a few random people that knew her, ranging from Tarutaru to Galka, she tried to get such thoughts off her mind. Questioning Nanaa made her feel disloyal to the woman who’d taken her in like a child of her own after her Mother had been killed. Opening the door of her mog house, she stepped inside and placed her sack down on the floor to her right, looking around the place as she locked the door behind her.

“Master, you have returned home!” Ellorna looked at her Moogle, whose wings fluttered with glee as he went about putting away the items she’d taken on her trip. “I have prepared a bath and a meal for your return.”

Brow raised, she shook her head and did not ask the question that was on her tongue. Her Moogle always seemed to know when she was returning even though he acted all surprised to see her. Glancing to the oak table that held the meal he spoke of she smiled, grabbing a few ginger cookies off the platter to munch on while she took a bath. As she slipped into the warm, soothing water, clothes tossed over the privacy screen for her Moogle to wash,  a sigh passed her lips, “Altana, it’s good to be home.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The use of the extra R's are intentional as this is how Mithra tend to speak. Also, if you are not a player of FFXI and are reading this I suggest, if you feel the need due to curiosity or confusion, searching on the net for the subject followed by FFXI. Example: Yagudo FFXI (There's a wiki found here: http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Windurst )


	3. Poison and Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awakened from sleep after a night of grueling work, Ellorna receives a surprise that leaves her in a tenuous position.

_Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang._

_Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang._

“What in the bloody-” Ripped out of her peaceful sleep by the annoying sound of someone beating on her door, a groan passing her lips, she glared at the wooden portal. Pushing her blankets off, she crawled out of bed, slipping on some black slacks to go with the doublet that she slept in. Slipping her feet into boots, she rubbed her eyes to clear her vision, and wondered why her head hadn’t exploded yet.

_Bang. Bang. Bang. BANG._

Growling as it got louder, she yelled, “I swearrr that if you don’t stop that incessant pounding that I’m going to pound you! Give me a bloody minute!”

Running a hand through her mussed brown hair to get it out of her face, she headed for her door. It’d been two weeks since she’d given the news to Nanaa about her possible suspicions and she hadn’t gotten a single night of peaceful sleep. Due to working, always wanting to enhance her skills by being out stealing from those pesky Yagudo, she was tired when she did come home. Yet, somehow she constantly got awoke by somebody pounding on her door. She’d told her Moogle not to even bothering answering it anymore. Usually the people got tired of waiting for her to answer and just left, finding a better time to contact her, but apparently this person was stubborn.

Unlocking the door, Ellorna ripped it open and then felt herself freeze in shock. On her doorstep stood the White Mage who had rescued her back when she was a child. The hume man was much older now, his short black hair graying in some spots, but she’d recognize that face anywhere. He wore a red-and-white cloak and white slacks, a staff strapped to his back, and had a sack in his hand. Fear showed openly in his green eyes.

Shaking off the shock, she pushed aside the old anger she felt that he’d abandoned her the way he had and motioned for him to come inside.

“Is therrre something I can do for you, sir?” Ellorna locked the door then moved back to her bed to stealthily remove her dagger from under her pillow and bent down to slip it into her boot. Turning her attention back to the man she noticed that he had not moved. Apparently this was serious.

Curious now she raised a brow, slowly approaching the man, worry on her face. Though she did not know much of the man beyond that he rescued and abandoned her she felt like there was some reason she should help him. “Sirrr? Is there something I can do?”

“DON’T TOUCH ME!” The words were screamed very loudly, making Ellorna cover her ears and take a step back as his panicked gaze met her nervous one, “They-they poisoned me. I-I may die. . . I don’t want you to catch it. Yo-your Mother would have been very-very upset. . .”

Those words threw her for a loop. A billion questions exploded in her mind: Was her Mother alive? Where had she been? What had the Yagudo done to her? Why hadn’t she contacted her?

Not sure which one to ask first, she stared at the man in burgeoning hope and this seemed to relax him enough to speak calmly, “She is not alive. . . I-I’m sorry.”

Guilt carved his features and seemed to make him age even more before her eyes. Motioning for him to take a seat on the stool at the table, she hurried into the kitchen to grab him a glass of Selbina Milk and brought it back. Taking a seat on the edge of her bed she didn’t ask any questions, figuring that he’d speak when he was ready, and tried to ignore the dull ache in her heart from hearing her Mother was actually dead.

After a few moments of silence, in which he drank every single drop of milk, he began to speak, “It was not just a coincidence I was in the beastman stronghold that day. Your Mother and I had a. . . forbidden love. My family did not approve of us. They thought it a sin for a Hume to be with a Mithra, and were set to do everything in their power to stop us from seeing each other. We’d decided that we wanted to marry, but knew that the only way to do it was to head for Aht Urhgan where my family would not be capable of coming between us. I knew about the spies my Father had in his household so. . .” He stopped, his voice filled with pain as tears slid down his cheeks, to take a deep breath before he continued, “we decided that we’d meet in Castle Oztroja, a place no measly spy would attempt to follow us, then I would teleport us back to Mea and we would run for the ferry in Mhaura. I wish it’d gone that way. . .”

Ellorna sat there, quietly observing him, her own face showing no sign of tears as she tried to digest what he’d just told her. She had not known that her Mother had loved someone. Everyone knew that Humes frowned on marriages unless they were with another of their own race, but that one had loved her Mother so much to risk losing his family made her wish she knew that kind of love. Her voice barely a whisper, she looked at him, “What happened afterrr you rescued me?”

“When your Mother contacted me with the link pearl I pushed my chocobo as hard as I could. By the time I got there though she’d been surrounded and had only enough time to shove you through them to me.” Shaking his head, he shoved a hand roughly through his hair, shame on his face, “It killed me to leave her there. After I rescued you I left you where I thought you’d be safe and went back to try to save your Mother. When I got back though they captured me and locked me in their dungeons, using a silencing spell on me to keep me from casting my own magic to cure her, and I told her before she died that if I ever got free I’d find you. Tell you that she loved you.”

Sighing softly, he stopped speaking, lost in his own regrets for a moment before he shook himself out of it, “That is only part of why I am here though. I was only recently given the opportunity to escape when a band of adventurers raided the dungeons and I found you as soon as I could. Lady Mihgo was nice enough to direct me to your home when I explained who I was and why I needed to speak with you. I did not plan to tell her everything, but she was very. . . forceful.”

Crying now, it took her a moment to calm herself, little sniffles still coming from her as she wiped the tears from her face with her hands. Blue eyes locked on his face after a moment, her voice quiet, “What is the other rrreason?”

No comment was made about Nanaa though. Ellorna knew how the woman could get information out of anyone, whether they wanted to give it or not. Right now all she wanted to know was why the man had come banging on her door hours before sunrise as though a thousand Yagudo were on his tail.

“The Yagudo are organizing. They upgrade their armor and weapons constantly. . . they communicate frequently and patrol more often. They even speak with other beastmen.” Frantically twisting his hands in his lap, he looked at her, fear in his eyes, “I worry that they are planning an attack on Windurst. Or perhaps on the entire land of Vana’diel. I just. . . have no way to prove any of this. I wanted you to know so you could get out of this place. Go far away. . . to Aht Urhgan if you must. Your Mother would not want you to die.”

All of that was taken in and stored in her mind, gone over and over as she considered what this all meant. If an attack was being planned then something had to be done to stop it ahead of time. Though Nanaa’s words kept coming back to her she knew that she needed to go see Semih Lafihina. When she realized that he was trying to get her to run away, to leave the only home she’d ever known and one that her Mother had loved, she shook her head.

Blue eyes bright with anger, she muttered, “You must have been hit on the head one too many times with a Yagudo stave if you think that I will just leave my home to be attacked by these horrible creaturrres as I did my Mother. I will do my best to stop this attack from occurring, but I will need yourrr help. Now are you with me?”

That question, unfortunately, was not answered as the man’s eyes suddenly closed and he fell off the stool with a thump. Eyes going wide, Ellorna dropped to her knees next to him, hurriedly check for signs of life and found none. Panic made her chest pound as it dawned on her that she’d ignored one vital fact: He had been poisoned. Jerking her hands back, she rose to her feet to hurriedly wash her hands; unsure of what type of poison he’d been infected with by the Yagudo. Slipping on some gloves, she picked up the sack he carried to go through it to find out any information on him that she could.

“Moogle!” Knowing that he could dispose of the man’s body, or at least find a place to keep it secure until she got to speak to Semih, she glanced over her shoulder as her winged friend appeared, “Rrremove him from my home, but keep him safe. I am sure the Patriarrrch Protector will wish to examine his body.”

Ellorna knew that by going to the leader of the Sibyl Guard she was directly disobeying a command from Nanaa, but this matter was bigger than the Thieves Guild. This was not something they could fiddle with to milk of profit until they felt it needed to be announced. If a war was being planned then it had to be stopped immediately. Taking the journal and some other items from the man’s sack, noticing the name on it was Elias Wilden, she placed the rest in her wooden chest. Shoving some of her own belongings into a sack with what she’d taken from Elias’s sack, she didn’t even bother changing as she rushed out the door of her mog house to quietly, not wanting any of the other Thieves to spot her, make for Heaven’s Tower in Windurst Walls.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments welcome. Advice welcome as well. Constructive criticism only though. I'll be adding to this story at a later date.


End file.
